Dry skin can be due to water loss through the skin or lack of sebum, a natural oil barrier produced by your skin. It can also be due to irritation, sun damage and exposure to wind, excess heat or cold. To be successful, a moisturizing and cleansing treatment for dry skin has to include products that will treat all these problems.
Significance
The outer layer of skin is a barrier that protects your health. Healthy skin prevents harmful microorganisms from entering your body and prevents excess water loss through the skin. Your natural skin oil, called sebum, combines with perspiration to form a moisturizing barrier. If this barrier is damaged due to loss of sebum and water, the skin becomes dry and cracked. Disease can enter through microscopic cracks in the skin, and water loss increases.
Cleansers
Scrubbing your skin with harsh soap, products that contain alcohol or bactericides, mesh sponges, abrasive scrubs and rough face cloths can cause more damage to dry skin. Use a mild cleanser containing moisturizers, such as a natural soap with glycerin, a humectant which attracts water and holds it on the skin, or milk soap, a source of alpha-hydroxy acid, another humectant. Apply the soap or cleanser with your fingers, and rinse thoroughly with tepid water.
Toner
Toner removes all final traces of cleanser from your skin. Use a toner that is labeled as moisturizing and does not contain alcohol. If your skin is inflamed or irritated, you can make your own toner from chamomile or calendula blossoms. Use dried blossoms to make a tea with boiled distilled water. Allow the tea to cool, add a drop or two of oil and then splash it on your face. While your face is still damp, apply your moisturizer.
Moisturizer Ingredients
Humectants attract and hold water on your skin. Look for ingredients such as glycerin, propylene glycol, urea, hyaluronic acid, glycolic acid or lactic acid Natural humectants you can find in your cupboard or your health food store include milk; fruits, such as avocado or strawberry; and vegetable glycerin. Emollients smooth your skin and seal in moisture. Look for oil, essential oils or petrolatum in your moisturizer.
Moisturizers contain water as well as humectant and emollient ingredients. Your moisturizer may also contain healing ingredients, such as aloe vera or oatmeal, and other ingredients, such as medications, emulsifiers, fragrance, color and preservatives.
Considerations
To use moisturizers most effectively, apply them every time you wash your face or take a shower or bath, while your skin is damp. When you try new products, do a patch test before applying the product to large areas of skin. Apply a dab of the product to your inner arm, and cover with a bandage for 24 hours. A rash, itching, swelling or inflammation means that the product is likely to irritate your skin.
References
- "Journal of Drugs in Dermatology"; Innovations in Natural Ingredients and Their Use in Skin Care; JF Fowler Jr et al; June 2010
- "Dermatologic Clinics"; Therapeutic Moisturizers; ZD Draelos; October 2000
- "Face, Hair and Body: Making Organic Masks, Treatments and Lotions for Natural Beauty"; Gill Farrer-Halls; 2004
- The Merck Manuals Online Medical Library: Skin Disorders
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